This application is a continuation-in-part of my application Ser. No. 252,935, filed Oct. 4, 1988, abandoned Mar. 14, 1990.
The present invention is directed to the field of water sprayers, and is more specifically directed to water massage apparatus which can be hand-held, for use with portable spas, in-ground spas, pool spas or the like having an interior wall including at least one receptacle into which a water jet, the term used to identify the nozzle through which a mixture of water and air is jetted, can be selectively inserted.
In all spas which employ water jets, each water jet is surrounded by a casing the term used to identify the unitary assembly of separate water and air intakes through which water and air are flowed and mixed before aerated water issues from the water jet, which is received in a receptacle recessed in the spa's interior wall. However, in a pool spa or an in-ground spa, the jets are flush with the wall, and the casing extends out of the wall and is externally threaded to mate with an internally-threaded open-ended cap to provide a smooth surface at the spa wall. In a portable (above-ground) spa, the jets and casing are recessed into ports in the surface of the wall of the spa and each casing is externally threaded for mating engagement with an internally-threaded receptacle at the base of each recess. Thus, different mechanisms are required for a device such as water massage apparatus to be connected to the water jet receptacles of an in-ground or pool spa, on the one hand, and a portable spa on the other hand.
Most hand-held water sprayers are adapted to be used in place of a conventional shower head in a bathtub. Such sprayers are characterized by West German Patent No. 2,028,937 to Weller, West German Patent No. 2,200,675 to Westerhoff, West German Patent No. 2,830,201 to Berenbrinker, West German Patent No. 3,506,078 to Haft, and Great Britain Patent No. 769,885 to Grohe. No mechanism is provided whereby such sprayers can be adapted for connection with the water jet receptacles of pool and in-ground spas or portable spas, much less all three. Also, since the flow of water to these sprayers is controlled by the bathtub faucets, these sprayers are not provided with separate on/off mechanisms Moreover, these sprayers are provided with jet plates or similar mechanisms designed to increase the pressure of the water as it exits the sprayer, thereby creating a massaging effect. Such an increase in pressure is unnecessary in a spa, as the water exiting the water jets is already under sufficiently high pressure to create a massaging effect.
Because of the high pressure of the water exiting the water jets, it is necessary that the interior structure of any massage device connected to a spa jet be sturdy enough to withstand such pressure. Further, because all the water jets of a spa are operated by a single on/off mechanism, it is necessary that any massage device connected to a spa jet have its own separate on/off mechanism if the spa is to be used without operating the massage device. It is the solution of these and other problems to which the present invention is directed.